Global event service company GL Events has invested in a consignment of 56 Yamaha DXR8 powered speakers for productions where multiple smaller loudspeakers are preferred to large-format PA systems. “We looked at a number and narrowed the choice down to two types, one of which was the DXR8,” said GL Events’ Frédéric Viricel. “We compared the sound of the two loudspeakers and the DXR8 was more precise, which is important for speech intelligibility.”

Two new L-Acoustics product videos are now available to view online, presented by head of application touring Scott Sugden. The first video addresses the physical principles and acoustic properties of constant curvature line sources and how they can be exploited. In the second, Sugden reviews the main features of the ARCS WIDE and ARCS FOCUS systems and their rigging options, amplification and more. www.l-acoustics.com

A TTAStagetracker FX system with QLab show control software managed all of the sound effects for the European premiere of Disney’s Aladdin: The New Stage Musicalat Denmark’s Fredericia Theatre. Aladdin was the biggest production ever staged at the Fredericia. Theatre director Søren Møller turned to Lars Frederiksen from TTA distributor Alfa Audio to supply both equipment and expertise on all aspects of the sound production. www.tta-sound.com

THE 2012 Nobel Peace Prize Concert – in honour of the European Union “for having over six decades contributed to the advancement of peace and reconciliation, democracy and human rights in Europe” – took place at the 9,700-capacity Oslo Spektrum arena in Norway in December.

Among the stars performing

at the event were pop artists Jennifer Hudson, Seal, Kylie Minogue and Ne-Yo joining international musicians including Portuguese trio OqueStrada and Romanian Gypsy brass legends Fanfare Ciocarlia. The diversity of the show’s

performances played a part in Norwegian sound supplier AVAB-CAC AS’s choice to use Meyer Sound’s new LEO linear large-scale sound reinforcement system, and a total of six Midas consoles for both FOH and monitors. “The Nobel Peace Prize Concert is a very high-profile gig

Seal was among the international artists who performed in Oslo

and is televised worldwide,” said Asle Nilsen, head of pro-audio at AVAB-CAC (part of the Nordic ‘super production group’). “It is absolutely essential that we work with the highest possible quality sound system.”

Nilsen has had a near 30-year

association with Meyer Sound, purchasing his first non-powered UPA-1 loudspeaker in 1984. Since then, he has added

extensive stocks of MICA, MILO and M’elodie line array systems to his inventory. In 2007, AVAB CAC became the exclusive Meyer Sound distributor for Norway. The 84-cabinet system used at the Nobel Peace Prize Concert included products from across the Meyer Sound range, resulting in a four-cluster configuration featuring two primary hangs of 12 LEO-M and four MICA loudspeakers per side, augmented by two side clusters of eight LEO-M and four MICA loudspeakers. An additional 16 M’elodie loudspeakers were used as front fills and 12 1100-LFC low- frequency control elements for bass reinforcement. “The system performed

extremely well,” said FOH engineer Øystein Karlsen. “It is by far the best PA set-up we have had in the arena. And to mix on the system is just amazing.” AVAB-CAC also specified six Midas consoles for the event.

“Mainly because their audio quality is best by far,” said Karlsen. “This combined with the network possibilities makes them perfect for this event.” In total, two XL8 consoles

and four PRO9 consoles were used for the concert. Karlsen and fellow FOH engineer Stein André Hovden had over 200 audio sources to work with during the show, and relied on a Midas DL431 mic splitter and AES50 tie lines between the consoles to accommodate the high channel count. “Imagine, we did this with

analogue splitters before,” said Karlsen. “Obviously we had to cut some corners back then. Now we have the perfect solution to accommodate any musician’s request.” The desks’ onboard effects

were used both at FOH and monitors, supplemented by a Lexicon 480 for the band FOH mix and a Lexicon 960 for the orchestra’s FOH mix. That orchestra (the

Norwegian Radio Orchestra) comprised over 55 individually mic’d instruments and played with nearly every act: “This meant that a lot of people needed to hear each other,” added Karlsen. At FOH, all strings were routed to five individual stereo groups, while the remaining instruments were spread over 46 channels. For monitors, AVAB-CAC

deployed Midas PRO9s: one exclusively for the orchestra, two for the remaining acts with the exception of Kylie Minogue, who had her own PRO9. “The extra PRO9 for Kylie

was because she played with the house band but brought her own four backing vocalists, music director and orchestral director,” said Karlsen. “With very limited soundcheck time and only two run throughs during the dress rehearsal, we thought it best to give Daniel Kent, Kylie’s monitor engineer, his own desk. This way Thomas (Wold, monitor engineer) could focus on the house band and Daniel on Kylie and her musicians.”n www.meyersound.comwww.midasconsoles.com